Originally published July 15 2005
New treatment successful in curing some irregular heart complaints
by Mike Adams, the Health Ranger, NaturalNews Editor
According to the University of Michigan Health System, researchers at the university have had success in treating irregular heart complaints, especially Atrial Fibrillation (AF), with a process called catheter ablation
Called catheter ablation, the approach has cured more than 1,000 U-M patients who have the most common form of irregular heart rhythm, called atrial fibrillation or AF, and allowed them to return to an active life.
Just like a house's electrical wires, the heart has a system of nerves that use a constant flow of electricity to control the pumping action of the heart's muscular walls.
The catheter ablation technique doesn't involve surgery, but rather a system of tiny wires that are fed into the heart through a major blood vessel.
U-M doctors are considered world leaders in catheter ablation for AF, with more successfully treated patients than most centers.
Morady is the McKay Professor of Cardiovascular Diseases and directs the Clinical Electrophysiology Service at the U-M Health System.
"Atrial fibrillation is often a result of some other type of heart problem, such as high blood pressure, problems with the mitral valve, and sometimes excessive thyroid hormone levels," he says.
Unlike other less common heart rhythm problems, AF doesn't pose a risk of killing a person directly.
But because it keeps the heart from pumping blood efficiently, blood clots can form in the chambers of the heart and travel to the brain, causing a stroke that can kill or cause permanent disability.
Sometimes, patients need to return for a second treatment, or need to receive a single cardioversion shock to permanently eliminate their AF.
Jerry Smith of Fort Wayne, Indiana had tried many medications in his three-year struggle with atrial fibrillation.
The condition had first made itself known to him when he was out deer hunting in the fall of 2001, and was helping a friend carry his prize back to the truck.
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